The scientist quoted in this article, Simon Baron-Cohen, is one of the world's leading experts on autism (I've read so many of his studies for tangentially related work) and is indeed related to Sacha Baron-Cohen. I think they're cousins or brothers, but I can't remember.

I don't understand the apparent obsession some researchers have with trying to get autistic children to interact with robots. The children I am acquainted with, who have an autism diagnosis, interact with technology just fine. It's interacting with people that they struggle with.

Lunaville:I don't understand the apparent obsession some researchers have with trying to get autistic children to interact with robots. The children I am acquainted with, who have an autism diagnosis, interact with technology just fine. It's interacting with people that they struggle with.

Kevin72:You know what is causing the leap in autism? Aspertame in diet soft drinks drunk during pregnancy. And the GMO corn in high fructose corn syrup isn't helping.

On one hand, this totally screams out troll to me. But on the other hand, anti-GMO/HFCS nut cases are always super eager to spew their smug all-natural nonsense anywhere they can. So I'm going to have to rate it a 4/10 with the possibility of adding a point or two if you get any bites.

blazemongr:Lunaville: I don't understand the apparent obsession some researchers have with trying to get autistic children to interact with robots. The children I am acquainted with, who have an autism diagnosis, interact with technology just fine. It's interacting with people that they struggle with.

Which is why the robot has a face.

Wouldn't it be better to have them interact with people? I hear those also have faces.

Kevin72:You know what is causing the leap in autism? Aspertame in diet soft drinks drunk during pregnancy. And the GMO corn in high fructose corn syrup isn't helping.

Aspertame made big Pharma figure out how to "diagnose" more forms of extremely expensive to treat "disorders" that only they can provide the "cure" for? Damn I want to get that stuff into whatever real estate agents and homebuilders drink. I could fix the housing market all by myself in a matter of weeks.

Gyrfalcon:blazemongr: Lunaville: I don't understand the apparent obsession some researchers have with trying to get autistic children to interact with robots. The children I am acquainted with, who have an autism diagnosis, interact with technology just fine. It's interacting with people that they struggle with.

Which is why the robot has a face.

Wouldn't it be better to have them interact with people? I hear those also have faces.

The point is that they resist interacting with people, but like technology, this is intended as a bridge of sorts, and their parent was in the room during the trials. The children who responded well to the robot, also interacted more with their parent than they normally would.

One kid even went so far as to recognize the frustration his teachers feel with him when the robot wouldn't do something he wanted it to do./read the whole article